The Mua Hills Clinic

Construction of the Mua Hills Clinic is nearly complete! The dedication ceremony is scheduled for early June 2004. This has been made possible by the generosity of the people of St. Paul's, the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, Grace Community Church, and all the individuals who either made donations or purchased crafts. The groundbreaking ceremony was held in February of 2002, and since then we have received nearly $40,000 in donations. Also since that time, Rev. Britt, Deb Stiver, and Bishop Katharine have visited the clinic. A team from Grace Community Church went to work on the clinic in February 2003. We now have the funds necessary to purchase the initial supply of medications, fund much of the first year of operation, and start new projects in the Mua Hills and elsewhere in Kenya.

Medical Professionals from the U.S. will work in the Clinic

The clinic will be operated and staffed by Africans. However, a number of medical professionals from Reno and elsewhere in the U.S. have expressed an interest in donating time at the clinic. These include nursing students from UNR.

New Projects

We plan to start several new projects in the Mua Hills. The African Inland Church is currently raising funds to purchase land adjacent to the clinic. Long-term plans include building a public library and a dormitory. This area of the Mua Hills has never had electricity. However, because the clinic is now there, the government has accelerated the process of running power lines to the area. We also have plans to work with the local Rotary club and water district to develop a groundwater supply for the area.

We will also be starting an entirely new project in the Village of Rabondo in Western Kenya. One of our criteria for starting a new project is that we work with motivated local leaders. The leaders of Rabondo are among the most motivated that I have yet encountered. When Cathy Fitzgerald and I visited Rabondo in June of 2002, we were told "we know that our water is poison, we know that it is killing our children, but we don't know what we can do about it." Rabondo is an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact with the resources that we commit there.

The Other Stuff

In 2003 we were granted recognition as a tax exempt public charity under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Service Code. This means that we no longer need to operate under the umbrella of St. Paul's to receive donations. But we will continue to maintain the close pastoral relationship that we have always enjoyed. We are also a non-profit corporation in the State of Nevada.

--Thank you again! The Members of IDM